What happened?
Arsenal missed out on the signing of Emi Buendia after Norwich accepted a club record offer from Aston Villa for the midfielder.
Did Arsenal really want him?
Sources involved in the deal have told football.london that Arsenal were ‘seriously’ interested in Buendia and launched a bid for him on Wednesday.
It's understood that Arsenal matched the salary being offered to Buendia, but Villa's package to Norwich was more enticing.
The Gunners offered a different structure of deal to Villa's, and Dean Smith's side also accepted a 10 percent sell on clause in the deal.
Why is Buendia joining Aston Villa?
It’s worth noting that Buendia has the same agent as Emi Martinez, and both players are close friends with their families intertwined.
Former Arsenal goalkeeper Martinez played a huge role in selling the Villa project to Buendia, while director of football Johan Lange also made it clear that Buendia is Villa's number one target this summer.
When asked why Buendia accepted Villa’s offer, a source close to the player replied: “we’re working on his best future" and confirmed that the players "wants" to join Dean Smith's side.
Have they missed out?
Buendia has just been named Championship Player of the Season and was one of the most creative midfielders in the Premier League during Norwich's previous spell in the top flight.
He's an exciting player with bags of potential, but only time will tell on whether Arsenal have missed out on a gem.
When will Arsenal sign players?
Arteta has already confirmed that it is likely Arsenal will do the bulk of their business after Euro 2020 finishes.
Much of the leg work has already been made in the build up to the opening of the transfer window on Wednesday.
Intermediaries have been contacted and there is a sense among those within football that Arsenal want to go about their business 'quietly' this summer.
It's also evident that players will be sold in the coming weeks, with the likes of Matteo Guendouzi, Granit Xhaka and Lucas Torreira all edging closer to leaving the club.
